Building a Headboard

Country Living's expert answers your questions about home improvement.

I would like my husband to build the headboard for our full-sized bed. Are there any detailed plans we could use to help us with this project?

Kathy Watson

Dear Kathy,
Since the bed is the centerpiece of the bedroom, your headboard will dictate the mood of the room. There are so many styles to choose from. Do you know what kind of headboard you want? I Googled "Making a Headboard," and the results directed me to an HGTV site that listed a slew of headboard ideas, from creating one out of wallpaper and paint to one made of standard pillows stapled to an MDF board and then covered with fabric. Many of the approximately 30 ideas came with informative how-to videos. It's a great place to start if you haven't decided what kind of headboard you want.

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Architectural elements and salvage can be repurposed as striking headboards. I asked Robert Ogden, designer at Peddler's Home Design (www.peddlersdesign.com), a home furnishings and accessories manufacturer with a vintage-industrial edge, for ideas. He suggested taking a 54" wide section of wood or metal fence (the same width as your full-sized bed) and attaching it directly to the wall. Metal gates, a mantel or an old window frame are other architectural elements or salvage that can be mounted in this way. Ogden also likes recycling objects and parts and creating something new with them. His idea for "a slightly more involved bed" would be to recycle an old paneled door: Run it horizontally as a headboard and attach legs to the backside. You could leave the door with a chipped paint finish (while I love that look, the potential for frequent paint flakes in the bed might be a nuisance), or it can be sanded, patched and painted for a sleeker look.

For a softer, more enveloping style, an upholstered headboard is a fairly easy project to tackle. A rectangular shape is the easiest to upholster, but you should check out sites like www.julietscottage.com for inspiration. A slipcovered headboard is a variation on the upholstered headboard, but it does require some sewing or adjusting with a hemming tape such as Stitch Witchery. The benefit of a slipcovered headboard is that it can be taken off and cleaned as needed.

Safety is a very important part of making your own furniture, especially a headboard that looms over your head each night. It must be able to withstand the pressure each time you get on the bed or when the kids decide that the bed works better as a trampoline. The headboard needs to support the bedtime reader as well as the tumultuous sleeper, so make sure you securely fasten it to either the wall or to bed rails.

I hope you've gotten a few ideas. When your headboard is complete, send us some pictures. Pleasant dreams!